Just got back from another WDW trip, while my last trip in 2020 was a rather big return trip for me, it was smack dab in the pandemic and plenty of things were altered or closed at the time. While I still had a good time, I was hoping to return when things were running closer to normal. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait another 15 years to return! As usual, I'll be sticking with covering anything new I experienced, as well as some general thoughts on the parks. So how did this trip fare out?
First off, thanks to a suggestion from Touring Plans, I took a leap of faith on coming here in the second half of August. And sure enough, while it was hot as usual, the crowds were totally manageable. Not as low as my last trip in 2020 for various reasons, but nowhere near as busy in far earlier trips during June/July. Also, hotels were quite cheaper for this weekend, and it allowed me to try a new thing, or in this case, a new hotel for me!
Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House
AKL is a hotel that I've always had my eye on, the theme and concept was quite intriguing, and with it designed by the same person who did Wilderness Lodge (a favorite of mine), as well as plenty of raves about the restaurants, I definitely wanted to check it out. And I'm very glad I did since I ended up loving this hotel! Like with WL, it had all that I enjoy with a hotel. Big atrium lobby, a lot of neat artworks all over the hotel, great restaurants (more on those later) and AKL has the added bonus of the various savannas. I booked a standard room, so I wasn't expecting much. But to my surprise, I ended up getting one of those "Secret Savanna" rooms as I had four zebras right outside my window/balcony when I walked in! It was really cool being able to see various animals as I woke up every morning, and even if I didn't and got a standard view, it was very easy spotting animals up close at the main savanna outlooks in the hotel, or in some cases just walking through the hotel and looking out the window! All in all, great hotel and I'd gladly come back here.
Genie+
So, I consider myself lucky I never had to deal with FP+ and the headaches that caused, since Genie+ worked rather fine for me without any abnormal issues. I say that since yes, the app would occasionally glitch on me, but ultimately, I was able to reserve Lightning Lanes with no problems.
Day 1: AK and my introduction to dining at AKL.
First day was pretty relaxed, hitting the main heavy hitters and seeing a few things which weren't open in 2020. Kilimanjaro Safari's remains the best ride in the park for me, the trails are still really good, and Dinosaur is still a nice underrated one for me. As for Pandora, Navi River Journey is s still a decent boat ride which I wish could've been a little bigger. As for Flight of Passage, I finally got to see the whole experience with both pre-shows. The first one with the genetic matching is...um, well that was a direction to take for what's the main headliner for the land. It's no fault of the actor, but it's not the kind of preshow that gets you excited for the ride. Thankfully the second preshow does a better job of doing that. As for the main ride, it's still a nice simulator. I don't think it's the most mind-blowing thing out there, but I'll happily take this over something like Soarin' Around the World.
Lunch was once again at Satu'li Canteen, I went with the chicken with noodles and the charred green onion vinaigrette this time, and this place is still one of the best quick service restaurants on the whole property. They really did this one right!
With the return of live shows, I was able to catch a couple performances of Kite Tales walking around Asia. It makes for a nice little distraction for a few minutes while hanging in the shade and not in the very hot looking amphitheater. I also saw Festival of the Lion King in its new fully indoor theater, which that alone is a wonderful improvement from the simply covered one it had in Camp Minnie Mickey. As for the show, it's still as good as I remembered it!
It's Tough to be a Bug! was a fun little 3D show as usual, and something that's become a twisted little tradition is seeing how many families bolt out of the theater once those black widows drop down. Normally it's a couple, but this time? Around 8 to 10! That's definitely a record for me, it's easily the most people I've seen run in terror from bugs. *HHN Looms in the distance*...for now.
The only downside for the day was that Everest was down, but it happens. I wasn't able to stay the whole day at the park to see if it would reopen due to hotel check in and settling into the room. It probably worked for the better since the skies opened up in the evening and it was MONSOON SEASON (Hi, Jinx!). Man, I haven't seen it rain this hard at the resort in a long while, some of the loudest thunderclaps I've heard, too! It made for an interesting trip over to a friend's place to meet up before dinner. Speaking of which...
Jiko - The Cooking Place
When it comes to restaurants, Jiko has always been on my radar. The menu looked right up my alley, and I've heard nothing but good things from anyone who's been there. I took a friend who's never been along with me, and to put it bluntly...that was the best meal I've had on property so far. Both of us were just blown away, the food was just fantastic, and the service was just as good. We made a meal of it, too. We started with the Duck Confit and Honey-Raisin Flatbread, which was simple yet varied in flavors from the duck and rocket to the harissa and spiced honey. Entree-wise, I had the Botswanan Seswaa Short Rib, while my friend went with the Moroccan Lamb Shank. I could cut my Short Rib with a spoon, and while it tasted great on its own, it was simply heavenly when you paired it with the hominy and sea peas.
As for my friend who had the Lamb Shank, you know the scene in Ratatouille where Anton Ego eats the Ratatouille and gets transported back to his childhood? I saw that happen in real time after his first bite! As it turns out, my friend has been to Morocco before, and that just catapulted him back there in an instant. I've never seen a moment like that in person before, so it was pretty magical.
For a dinner like this, we had to finish with dessert, and we went with the Malva Pudding. A very tasty dish that was light yet satisfying, and the presentation of this dessert is just beautiful. Overall, my friend and I really enjoyed Jiko. It was the perfect way to start the trip and it was a wonderful introduction to the dining offered at AKL.
And that's a good way to end the first part of the TR, next up is a very jam-packed Saturday with Epcot and Hollywood Studios!
First off, thanks to a suggestion from Touring Plans, I took a leap of faith on coming here in the second half of August. And sure enough, while it was hot as usual, the crowds were totally manageable. Not as low as my last trip in 2020 for various reasons, but nowhere near as busy in far earlier trips during June/July. Also, hotels were quite cheaper for this weekend, and it allowed me to try a new thing, or in this case, a new hotel for me!
Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House
AKL is a hotel that I've always had my eye on, the theme and concept was quite intriguing, and with it designed by the same person who did Wilderness Lodge (a favorite of mine), as well as plenty of raves about the restaurants, I definitely wanted to check it out. And I'm very glad I did since I ended up loving this hotel! Like with WL, it had all that I enjoy with a hotel. Big atrium lobby, a lot of neat artworks all over the hotel, great restaurants (more on those later) and AKL has the added bonus of the various savannas. I booked a standard room, so I wasn't expecting much. But to my surprise, I ended up getting one of those "Secret Savanna" rooms as I had four zebras right outside my window/balcony when I walked in! It was really cool being able to see various animals as I woke up every morning, and even if I didn't and got a standard view, it was very easy spotting animals up close at the main savanna outlooks in the hotel, or in some cases just walking through the hotel and looking out the window! All in all, great hotel and I'd gladly come back here.
Genie+
So, I consider myself lucky I never had to deal with FP+ and the headaches that caused, since Genie+ worked rather fine for me without any abnormal issues. I say that since yes, the app would occasionally glitch on me, but ultimately, I was able to reserve Lightning Lanes with no problems.
Day 1: AK and my introduction to dining at AKL.
First day was pretty relaxed, hitting the main heavy hitters and seeing a few things which weren't open in 2020. Kilimanjaro Safari's remains the best ride in the park for me, the trails are still really good, and Dinosaur is still a nice underrated one for me. As for Pandora, Navi River Journey is s still a decent boat ride which I wish could've been a little bigger. As for Flight of Passage, I finally got to see the whole experience with both pre-shows. The first one with the genetic matching is...um, well that was a direction to take for what's the main headliner for the land. It's no fault of the actor, but it's not the kind of preshow that gets you excited for the ride. Thankfully the second preshow does a better job of doing that. As for the main ride, it's still a nice simulator. I don't think it's the most mind-blowing thing out there, but I'll happily take this over something like Soarin' Around the World.
Lunch was once again at Satu'li Canteen, I went with the chicken with noodles and the charred green onion vinaigrette this time, and this place is still one of the best quick service restaurants on the whole property. They really did this one right!
With the return of live shows, I was able to catch a couple performances of Kite Tales walking around Asia. It makes for a nice little distraction for a few minutes while hanging in the shade and not in the very hot looking amphitheater. I also saw Festival of the Lion King in its new fully indoor theater, which that alone is a wonderful improvement from the simply covered one it had in Camp Minnie Mickey. As for the show, it's still as good as I remembered it!
It's Tough to be a Bug! was a fun little 3D show as usual, and something that's become a twisted little tradition is seeing how many families bolt out of the theater once those black widows drop down. Normally it's a couple, but this time? Around 8 to 10! That's definitely a record for me, it's easily the most people I've seen run in terror from bugs. *HHN Looms in the distance*...for now.
The only downside for the day was that Everest was down, but it happens. I wasn't able to stay the whole day at the park to see if it would reopen due to hotel check in and settling into the room. It probably worked for the better since the skies opened up in the evening and it was MONSOON SEASON (Hi, Jinx!). Man, I haven't seen it rain this hard at the resort in a long while, some of the loudest thunderclaps I've heard, too! It made for an interesting trip over to a friend's place to meet up before dinner. Speaking of which...
Jiko - The Cooking Place
When it comes to restaurants, Jiko has always been on my radar. The menu looked right up my alley, and I've heard nothing but good things from anyone who's been there. I took a friend who's never been along with me, and to put it bluntly...that was the best meal I've had on property so far. Both of us were just blown away, the food was just fantastic, and the service was just as good. We made a meal of it, too. We started with the Duck Confit and Honey-Raisin Flatbread, which was simple yet varied in flavors from the duck and rocket to the harissa and spiced honey. Entree-wise, I had the Botswanan Seswaa Short Rib, while my friend went with the Moroccan Lamb Shank. I could cut my Short Rib with a spoon, and while it tasted great on its own, it was simply heavenly when you paired it with the hominy and sea peas.
As for my friend who had the Lamb Shank, you know the scene in Ratatouille where Anton Ego eats the Ratatouille and gets transported back to his childhood? I saw that happen in real time after his first bite! As it turns out, my friend has been to Morocco before, and that just catapulted him back there in an instant. I've never seen a moment like that in person before, so it was pretty magical.
For a dinner like this, we had to finish with dessert, and we went with the Malva Pudding. A very tasty dish that was light yet satisfying, and the presentation of this dessert is just beautiful. Overall, my friend and I really enjoyed Jiko. It was the perfect way to start the trip and it was a wonderful introduction to the dining offered at AKL.
And that's a good way to end the first part of the TR, next up is a very jam-packed Saturday with Epcot and Hollywood Studios!